Propaganda Posters from the William Warder Cadbury Collection
Propaganda posters have been somewhat of a sexy topic recently. Historians like Stefan Landsberger have written extensively about Chinese propaganda posters, noting that they were a central part of Communist party mass campaigns. They have also proven a fertile ground of inquiry for art historians who use the posters to gain some insight into the artistic demands that the party placed on the artists it sponsored. They have even gained some cachet among tourists and art collectors seeking to take home a piece of Communist paraphernalia; I myself bought a few in the old city district of Shanghai in 2008 when I was doing a film there. Can you spot the communist propaganda in my freshman year common room?
Less examined, however, are the posters and propaganda of the Republic of China period. This is for a few reasons: the mass campaigns of that period are more varied and scattered than the enormous nation-wide projects that the Communists launched. In addition, there is more variation in pre-1949 art. It is less easy to make the kind of sweeping conclusions about the relation of art and politics that were made easy by the universal dominance of Socialist Realism after they took control. I remember a talk by Dr. Ying Li (at a special collections exhibit no less), a Haverford professor of fine art, in which she recalled her own art education in Anhui province in the 1970s. As I recall from her talk, the party had artists brought in from the Soviet Union, and decided to establish Socialist Realism as the only legitimate (e.g. non-bourgeoisie) kind of art and certainly the only kind of art that would be used in official propaganda. Propaganda adopted the ubiquitous figures like the worker, the soldier, and the peasant whose facial features were largely institutional, not artistic.
While I was exploring the William Warder Cadbury collection, I came across a number of fascinating pre-communist propaganda posters. The posters addressed a huge diversity of topics and styles, a marked change from the regularity found in the communist posters I had had experience with. The artists who created these works were not all trained under the party line, but rather reflected a diversity of styles and training. Some, like this follow piece reminded me of Qing Dynasty style woodblock printing (caveat: I am no art historian; these are just sort of general observations).
Others, like the poster below use traditional Chinese iconography in ways that were never seen once Communists rule was established. Communists believed that Chinese culture was backwards and that “feudalistic” elements of their culture had to be purged. The poster below, issued by the Shanghai Worker’s Association, features a traditional Chinese demon figure labeled as “English Imperialism” throttling the lifeless body of the Chinese people.
These posters are really under-appreciated and offer a valuable look into the maelstrom that is the political and artistic landscape that is early 20th century China. Come by and check them out (they’re all in Box #71), and if I’m around I’ll be happy to give you mediocre translations of what’s going on in them.